- Dedicated to - Hazrat Mahmmad
- Location - Sadar Bazaar, Old Delhi
- Constructed By - Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan
The Jama Masjid, the Friday congregational mosque, in Delhi is the largest and glorious mosque in India. It was the last architectural extravaganza of the Mughal Emperor, Shahjahan built in the year 1656 AD with the help of 5,000 craftsmen. It was made across the road from the Red Fort. The mosque is also known as Masjid-I-Jahanuma, which means
'mosque commanding view of the world'. The measurement of the mosque is
65 m X 35 m while the courtyard is forms an area of 100 n square. The
mosque has the capacity to hold as many as 25,000 devotees. The Lal Qila
or the Red Fort stand towards the east of the mosque.
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The
Jama Masjid was designed as the main mosque of Shahjahan. It stands on
one of the two hills, Bho Jhala in the Mughal capital, Shahjahanabad.
The mosque has three gateways, four towers and two minarets. It is
constructed with alternate use of vertical strips of red sandstone and
white marble. The white marble has been used extensively in the three
domes and has been inlaid with stripes of black. The structure was
situated on a high platform so that its magnificent facade would be
visible from all the neighboring areas. The main prayer hall on the west
is decorated by a series of high cusped arches, which stand on 260
pillars. These pillars support 15 marble domes at various elevations.
The imposing gateways are approached through a broad flight of steps in
the north and the south. The hallmarks of this famous mosque are the
wide staircases and arched gateways.
The tower is made up of
five distinguished storeys, each pronounced by a protruding balcony.
Beautiful calligraphy embellishes its adjacent buildings. The first
three storeys of the tower are made of red sandstone, the fourth one,
while the fifth is again of sandstone.
The closet in the North
gate of the mosque contains a collection of Muhammad's relics - the
Quran written on deerskin, a red beard-hair of the prophet, his sandals
and his footprint, embedded in a marble slab, all of which are still
preserved.
The premises of the south minaret are 1076 sq ft
wide where the people assemble for the namaaz. The cost for building the
mosque was approximately Rupees 10 crores. It was the replica of the
Moti Masjid at Red Fort in Agra. It is said that the walls of the mosque
were tilted at a certain angle so that at the time of an earthquake, the
walls do not collapse in the courtyard but outwards. The Jama Masjid
combines the best of he Hindu and Islamic styles of architecture.
The
main entrance on the eastern side was probably used by the emperors. It
remains close on the weekdays.