The manmade Bhool Bhulaiyaa

Mention Bhool Bhulaiyaa and the immediate reaction is that it is a 2007 Bollywood remake of the English film “The Maze”. The Hindi film starred Akshay Kumar, Vidya Balan and others.

The huge house that is shown in the film is in Jaipur and the many passages of the house and the staircases add to a sense of the mystery in the film.

However, India is fortunate to have a real maze, which is also called Bhool Bhulaiyaa. This structure is a Nawabi inspiration and it was built when the province was in the throes of a severe drought. The Nawab employed thousands of labourers to build the Bhool Bhulaiyaa.

One legend about the structure is that as soon as labourers finished construction of a portion of a wall, the Nawab sent away all the labourers from the work spot and had it pulled down so that the labourers would be reemployed in building it afresh.

Another legend associated with the Bhool Bhulaiyaa is that if common men were employed in the morning, noblemen and the landed gentry worked on it during the night. All in all, the Bhool Bhulaiyaa is a superb piece of architecture and it is a harmonious blend of  local, Mughal, Arabic and European architecture.       

A man made wonder, this structure is also well known as the gravity defying palace. This palace has more than a thousand narrow staircases with the stairs going up and down in a confusing manner.

It is this intriguing maze that lends the name Bhool Bhulaiyaa to the structure which comprises of a large mosque, the Bhool Bhulaiyaa or the labyrinth or the maze, a bowli, a step well with running water and two imposing gateways lead to the main hall.

This is the much visited and much admired Bhool Bhulaiyaa of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh.

The Bhool Bhulaiyaa is mystifying palace complex commissioned in 1783 by Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula of Oudh or Awadh. This called the Bara Imambara and the Bhool Bhulaiyaa is an integral part of it. The Imambara’s central arched hall is almost 50 meters long and about three stories high. What makes this arch all the more astounding is that it has no pillars or beams. No iron is used. This is supposed to be the world’s largest unsupported structure. It contains the vaulted central chamber with the tomb of Asaf-ud-Daula.

The Imambara was designed by Kifayatullah of Delgi and even his tomb is in the main hall of the Imambara.

The main hall of the Imambara was constructed with interlocking brickwork and is  from here that the Bhool Bhuliayaa commences. There are eight surrounding chambers around the central vault and they are built to different roof heights. This allowed the Nawab to use he spaces above them to design the labyrinths with passages and stairs which are interconnected with each other through 489 identical doorways.

This is possibly the only existing maze in India and it today supports almost the entire weight of the building. The only other similar maze, though not as big or as confusing is the tunnels leading from the Ibrahim Rouza mosque or the stairs leading to the whispering gallery in Bijapur. Another similar monument would be the palace of thousand doors, several of them false, in Murshidabad.    

Coming back to Lucknow, this maze has more than 1,000 narrow staircase passages and old timers say that it was meant to prevent any possible intruders from gaining any easy access or easy egress from the building. Since the passages are open, you can roam around them but it is better to hire a guide. If not, follow the ray of sunlight that you can see at the end of the maze and you are sure to come out of  jigsaw.

Since there is an Asifi mosque, the structure is also called Asifi Imambara. There is also a Chotta Imambara nearby, a smaller and beautiful version of the Bara Imambara.

Bara in Urdu means big and Imambara means a shrine. This was built for Shia Muslims for Azadari (Azadari in Lucknow is the  practice during Moharram relating to mourning and commemoration of the anniversary of the death of Imam Husayn ibn Ali at the Battle of Karbala in 680).  

The construction of the Imambara was completed in 1791 and it was estimated to cost anywhere between half a million to a million rupees. Even after the building was completed, the Nawab spent every year several thousand rupees on its decoration.

There is also a tunnel which leads through a mile-long underground passage to a spot adjacent to the Gomti river. There are several other passages and they are supposed to lead to Faizabad, Allahabad and even to Delhi. These passages have now been sealed.

Take a look at the Imambara and explore its maze. I can assure you, it will be worth your while.

The palace of a thousand doors

Talk of Lalbagh and the Botanical Gardens of Bangalore flash across your mind. The Lalbagh Gardens were started by Hyder Ali sometime in 1760 and subsequently developed by Tipu and after his death on May 4, 1799 by the British. 

However, there is another Lalbagh and this one is not a park but a locality of  the historic town of  Murshidabad in West Bengal. It is separated from Rajshahi district by river Padma.

The Lalbagh of Murshidabad has no botanical but historical importance. When Prince Farrukhsiyar of the Mughals came to Murshidabad from Dacca, he was assigned a palace at Lalbagh. Today, there is no trace of  the palace.

However, the Lalbagh here is home to one of the most outstanding pieces of architecture-the Hazarduari Palace ort the palace with a thousand doors.

This palace, a three stories structure, is situated on the eastern bank of the river Bhagirathi or Padma and it derives its name from its thousand real and false doors. It has 900 real doors and 100 structures that resembles doors but are not. They are all imaginary. They were built so that if any predator and enemy tried to enter the palace and escape, he would be confused between the false and real doors, and by that time he would be caught by the Nawab's guards.

The palace was earlier known as the Bara Kothi. It has 114 rooms.

This palace is the chief object of attraction in Murshidabad and it has so much of history that it would takes realms of pages and days to even narrate it.

The enclosure within which the palace is situated is also called the Nizamat Fort or Nizamat Kila. It was built by Nawab Nazim Humayan Jah of Bihar, Bengal and Orissa during 1829-1837 A.D. Now, Kila Nizamat refers to the campus where the palace is located along with the several other monuments such as Nizamat Imambara, clock tower, Madina mosque, Chawk Masjid, Bacchawali Tope, Shia complex, Wasif Manzil and two Zurid mosques.

Tourists call the Hazarduari Palace the Nizamat Kila or the Kila Nizamat The foundation for the palace building was laid by the Nawab on August 29, 1829 in presence of the then Governor-General of India, Lord William Cavendish Bentinck. The construction of this building was complete in December 1837 AD.
The concrete bed on which the foundation stone of the palace was to be laid was built so deep that the Nawab had to use a ladder to descend down. The suffocating atmosphere created due to the large number of people which stood surrounding them and the depth made the Nawab’s wife to faint. At last, after she was helped up, the foundation stone was truly laid and was declared to have been well.
The Hazarduari complex, in all, occupies 41 acres and when the palace was built it just cost Rs. 20.5 lakhs. The Palace has 114 rooms and eight Galleries. The architect was Colonel Duncan McLeod of the Bengal Corps, who also personally supervised the work.

The palace is now a museum which houses priceless paintings, furniture, antiques and other valuable artifacts. The most famous exhibit is the mirror and the chandelier.

The Palace museum has twenty galleries containing 4742 antiquities out of which 1034 has been displayed for the public. The antiquities include various weapons, oil paintings of Dutch, French and Italian artists, marble statues, metal objects, porcelain and stucco statues, farmans, rare books, old maps, manuscripts, land revenue records, palanquins mostly belonging to eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, a bamboo from Assam and other objects.  The Durbar Hall of the palace which houses the furniture used by the Nawab has a crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling. It is the second largest chandelier in the world, after one in Buckinmgham Palace. It was gifted to the Nawab by Queen Victoria.

Another attraction is the two pairs of mirrors in the museum. These mirrors are placed at an angle of 90 degrees in such a way that one cannot see ones own face but others can see the face. The mirrors  was used by the Nawab to prevent his enemies from harming him. They were kept at a place so that the enemy cannot see his face and the Nawab could see the face. This is also called the magic mirrors and they are displayed just outside the gallery on the landing leading to the upper floors.

In the entrance porch of the palace there are two carriages, of which one is a camel carriage and the other is a Victorian carriage. Both of them were used by the Nawabs.

The lobby has photographs of several buildings of historical importance and also a huge stuffed crocodile and a thick bamboo from Assam.

Gallery no. 1 and 2 also known as Armoury wing and they house weapons like knives, guns, pistols, revolvers, cannons, lances, spears, shields, bows, arrows, rifles. Some of the weapons are inscribed with verses from the Quaran.

The Jamadhara and a bifurcated sword known as Zulfikar are associated with Mir Quasim. There are swords that belong to Alivardi Khan and his son Siraj-ud-Daula. The dagger with which  Muhammad i-Beg killed Siraj-ud-Daula can also be seen.

A huge cannon known as the Dutch cannon can be seen here. It was gifted to Alivardi Khan by the Dutch Government in 1745. It is also called Mir Madan Cannon. Mir Madan was a trusted lieutenant of Siraj-ud-Daula who died in the battle of Plassey in 1757.

Gallery no. 3 is the gallery containing royal exhibits. It houses several paintings and objects of silver and gold and several statues each of historical, political and religious importance. The gallery has been divided into three parts such as the Suthest royal exhibits which houses and exhibits huge oil paintings of the Nawabs such as the painting of Nawab Nazim Humayun Jah by Hutchinson and that of Nawab Nazim Feradun Jah by B. Hudson. One of the most renowned objects is an ivory palanquin used by Zebunissa, the daughter of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb (1658–1707).

The next section is called the central royal exhibit, which displays several objects such as a silver Kamal howdah, an ivory Tanjam or sedan chair belonging to the Mughal Emperor Shahajan. The south west royal exhibit houses several traditional objects like palanquins, statues and paintings.

Gallery no. 4 is also known as the landscape gallery. It has paintings of several landscapes. It has replicas of the Statue of Liberty, bronze statues of knights, and famous paintings like the Scotch Warrior by G. Campbell, Scene of Thirty Years of War by Jorgenson.

Gallery no. 5 is the British portrait gallery. It has busts of the Governor-Generals of India and agents of the East India Company like Cornwallis, Bentinck, A. Thompson and others. All the paintings, except that of Caulifield, is by Hudson. The painting of  Caulifield is by Hutchinson.

The staircase leading to the upper portico of the palace is perhaps the biggest of its kind in India. Gallery no. 6 is known as the Nawab Nazim gallery and it contains portraits of the Nawabs of Murshidabad. It also has several brass objects.

Gallery no. 7 is the Durbar Hall. It is the center attraction of the palace museum. It is circular in plan and has four doors at the cardinal points, including fake doors. The hall also has a vaulted roof with the crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling. It was presented to the Nawab by Queen Victoria. Earlier when there was no electricity the chandelier was lit by 1001 candles; at present it is lit by 96 bulbs.

The hall also displays the royal silver throne which was used by the Nawabs to sit on, a Durbari Hookah and marble candle stands.

Gallery no. 8 is the Committee Room, on the left side of the Durbar hall. It exhibits the silver throne of Feradun Jah, an ivory sofa, and an oil painting of the Durbar Hall with Feradun Jah on the throne surrounded by high ranking British officials.

Gallery no. 9 is known as the Billiards Room. It has two billiards tables with their accessories, a pietra dura marble chess set and four remarkable paintings like the that of Colonel Duncan McLeod by Hudson. McLeod was the architect of this grand palace.

Gallery no. 10 is the portrait gallery of the Dewans and Nazirs. This gallery also displays several vases, chandeliers and furniture.

Gallery no. 11 is known as the Prince portrait gallery. This gallery displays paintings from the Nawabs' family album portraying the infancy and various other moods of the Nawabs. There are also several marble statues, cut-glass melons, vases, metal horses, porcelain bear.

Gallery no. 12 is known as the Western drawing room. It exhibits several items of  western furniture, decorative lamps, clock items and so on. It has paintings of King William, Lord Curzon by Wolic.

Gallery no. 13 is known as the Archive gallery. It has several archives of the Nawabs’ rule and also on the palace. It also has several letters, farmans (royal orders), documents, manuscripts in Arabian and Persian belonging to the Nawabs and Mughals.

Some of the documents speak about the administrative power of the Nawabs. There are letters like those written by Lord Minto to Lord Hastings and a royal order by Mughal Emperor Shah Alam.  It also has several valuable and old manuscripts written in Urdu    and Persian, including the Ain-i-Akbari by Abul Fazl. At the end of each page of Ain-i-Akbari, ornamental works with the smallest brush and pen are visible on the corners of  each page. It also has a library known as the Nizamat Library which has about 12,000 books.

Gallery no. 14 and 15 is known as the periodical gallery I and II. These two galleries are used to periodically display several objects used and brought or manufactured during the reign of several Nawabs. These include Humayun Jah's collection of rare dining plates, there are also some green plate which would shatter if poisoned food was served; others include several landscape oil paintings, an ornamental silver dressing table, floral and geometric motifs and so on.

Gallery no. 16 is known as the central landing or the Main Hall. It exhibits several oil paintings. One artifact is a silver trowel with an ivory handle used by Humayun Jah to lay the foundation stone of the building.

Gallery no. 17 is called the North-east landing first floor. It exhibits several paintings. The gallery is renowned for the beautiful statue of a European lady.

Gallery no. 18 is known as the North-west landing first floor. It  exhibits several paintings like the Swiss Landscape, City of Venice.

Gallery no. 19 is called the Painting Gallery and it houses paintings like the Holy Family by Franceso Renaldi, Cleopatra Cinderella by T. Young and so on. A must see is a needle work on a carpet which portrays a seated Queen Victoria with two babies, and a litho print of Humayun Manzil, another palace of Humayun Jah.

Gallery no. 20 is known as the religious objects’ gallery. It exhibits several objects used for religious purposes, like in Muharram and Eid.

The Madhwa Seer who showed the Sun at midnight, drank poison

There are hundreds of seers and saints in India and many of them have played a vital role in shaping the religious, philosophical and even social flow of the country and its people.

Many saints have been blessing people by performing miracles from their Brindavana.  If Raghavendra Swamy, Vadiraja Theertha, Sripadaraja and Raghuttama Theertha continue to inspire millions of people across the globe with their miracles, there is another saint who is equally known for his miracles and prowess. He was such a great Gyani or scholar and devotee of Moola Rama that he once showed the bright Sun to his disciples well after midnight.

This saint also prolonged the life of his Shishya by ten years. He was also called the Trikalajnani of He is none other than Satyabodha Theertha who belongs to the Uttaradhi Matha parampare.

A contemporary and close friend of  Dhirendra Theerta of Raghavendra Swamy Matha, Satyabodha Theertha was an unparalleled scholar and mystic. He was the Guru whom Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan of Mysore, the Nawab of Savanur and even the British regarded very highly.

Though he was an orthodox Brahmin, he counted thousands of Muslims and Christians and even people from other religions as his followers and disciples.

Just as Sir Thomas Munroe has given us a graphic account of his meeting with Raghavendra Swamy, another British official, James Campbell, has left behind an extensive write up on Satyabodha Theertha.

The write up by Campbell is even today available in the Bombay Gazeteer, Karnataka Dharwad district Chapter III, Page Nos 58-59 edited and published by James M. Campbell.   

Satyabodha Theertha was the 15^th pontiff after Ramachandra Theertha to occupy the seat of the Uttaradhi Matha. He was born as Ramacharya in Raichur and he was initiated into the religious order by Sri Satyapriya Theertha, his Guru and Peetadhipathi of the Uttaradhi Matha.

Ramacharya spent his childhood in the Matha and Satyapriya Theertha took great interest in teaching him the Shastras. Once, he was worshipping the saligrama and shanka, when Lord Shvetavarha gave darshan to him in a miniature form.

Satyapriya Theertha soon entered Brindavana and left Satyabodha Theertha to guide the Matha.

Satyabodha then began on a long and extensive tour of India. He defeated all his adversaries (in philosophy and religion) and popularized Dwaitha Siddhantha.  Several Kings and Emperors showered him with letters of appreciation and Tamra Patras (copper plates).

The fame of  the seer spread far and wide and the Nawabs of Savanaur and Ramnad apart from Tipu Sultan honored him. The British too wrote that the seer radiated a hypnotic and divine presence. One British official swore that the seer had telepathic powers.

When the seer’s fame increased, some people felt jealous and decided to do away with the seer. They poisoned his food (Paramanna) which he would eat after performing Naivaidya to Moola Rama and Digvijaya Rama.

When Satyabodha Theertha offered naivaidya to the gods, the face of Moola Rama turn dark. The seer came to know what had happened but he kept quite.

The seer then proceeded to eat the poisoned food even though his Shishyas urged him to desist. His contention was what is good for Moola Rama is good enough for me. All the while, he sought pardon from Moola Rama for having him offered poison.

The poison had no effect and the Seer continued with his normal activities.

Another time, a man claiming to be a Shishya of Satyabodha Theertha had accumulated a lot of wealth by performing some magic. The Shishya claimed that he was doing all activities as per the wishes of Srinivasa. When Satyabodha heard of this, he went to the Shishya and the man could not perform any miracle. Humiliated and chastened, he surrender all his wealth and went away from the matha. He also promised Satyabodha Theertha that he would never resort to trickery to hoodwink people.

During one of his tours to north, Satyabodha Theertha came to Gaya in Bihar where he found that local priests called Pandas had completely taken over the management and daily activities of the Vishnu Pada temple.

The seer found that the Pandas were demanding money for everything and were harassing people in the name of religion. He then set up an exclusive shelter for pilgrims near the temple and named it Rama Gaya. The Pandas were completely isolated and begged the seer for forgiveness.

The seer then proceeded to Kashi and set up a matha at Durga Ghatta to provide facilities for pilgrims.

After his tour, he came to Savanur which then was under the rule of the Nawabs. By then he had ruled the Madhwa pontificate for more than 39 years. He decided to hand over the reigns of the matha to Satyasandha Theertha.

A little later, Satyabodha Theertha found that his successor had only a short time to live. He prayed to Lord Moola Rama with Raksha Stotram and ensure that the life of Satyasandha Theertha was extended by ten more years.

Once he was having food in the night. Several shishyas and others commented about it. They said this was not the first time that Sathyabodha Theertha had violated tradition by eating after daylight. They said it is wrong and not according to scriptures.

Satyabodha Theertha overheard them and asked them to come near him. He asked them to look up at the sky. When the Shishyas saw it first, it was dark and the moon was shining. When they saw it again they saw the Sun shining brightly.

While almost all the disciples were convinced about the prowess and greatness of the Seer, one person disdainfully claimed it was only magic. He immediately lost his eyesight.

The seer realised that his end was near, He wanted to go to the north and bathe in the Ganga. When he went to sleep, Lord  Badarinarayana came in his dreams and asked him to stay back in the Ashrama as Bhagirathi herself would come.

The next day, the Bhagirathi came flowing down to the matha and the seer and his devotees had a bathe in the holy waters.

Satyabodha Theertha left his mortal body at Savanur on March 9, 1783. His Brindavana is in the Uttaradhi Matha at Savanur. Such is his greatness that even today the matha is known as Satyabodha Matha.

Many details of the life and times of the seer can be found in Shri Satyabodha Vijaya written by Kanchi Acharya, his disciple. The kavya is a verse written in 21 saragas and it describes Satyabodha’s life in detail.

Satyabodha Theertha accepted ashrama in 1744 and he entered the brindavana in 1783. Naivedyagavisham in his charamashloka. This is in honour of the poison he took.

Satyabodha Theertha had four main disciples and all of them headed the Uttaradhi Matha. They are Satya Sandha Theertha, Satyavara Theerta, Satya Dharma Theertha and Satya Sankalpa Theertha.

Even today, Satyabodha Theertha continues to perform miracles from his Brindavana. There are hundreds of instances when he has helped devotees in distress. Visit his Brindavana at Savanur to get a feel of his greatness.  The matha has arrangements for staying.