Mughal Architecture

Question 1

Indo-Islamic architecture

Answer 1

1. The Islamic rule in India saw the introduction of many new elements in the building style. This was much distinct from the prevailing building style adopted in the construction of temples and other secular architecture. The different religious beliefs are also reflected in construction and architectural Styles of the time.
2. Important features
3. The main elements in the Islamic architecture is the introduction of arches instead of using pillars, beams and lintels. Arches at Qutub Minar can be cited as examples.
4. Instead of Shikhara, dome became the central element. Central Dome was most prominent part and it was topped by an inverted lotus motif.
5. Lofty towers or minarets were another distinctive element which exhibited Persian influence.
6. Now, limestone mixed mortar was used as a cementing method.
7. As human worship and its representation are not allowed in Islam, the buildings are decorated richly in geometrical and arabesque designs.
8. There is intricate Jali work on the walls which signifies
   importance of light in Islam.
9. Gardens were important part, and among these Chahar Bagh have special place.
10. Pietra dura style was used for ornamentation. Floral designs were carved in walls and semi-precious stones were fitted in these engravings for entire design.

Question 2

Mughal Architecture

Answer 2

1. During Akbar’s reign, Mughal architecture had regional influence (Gujarati, Bengali and Rajput tradition) while Jehandir and Shah Jahan included Persian elements predominantly.
2. The 1st building of this rule was Humayun’s tomb at Delhi in which magnificent building red stone was used.
3. Akbar built a fort at Agra which was influenced from Rajput tradition. Agra fort was made of Red Sandstone with Gujarati and Rajput influence. The use of domes was avoided and instead replaced by chatris.
4. Albar also built a fort at Fatehpur Sikri and it marked 2nd phase of architecture during reign of Akbar. It had both religious and secular buildings. Among religious builidings, Jama Masjid was inside Buland Darwaza. The Ibadat Khana is another notable builidng where Akbar used to have religious discourses. Among secular buildings, there were many administrative and residential buildings. Ex - Panch Mahal, Birbal’s palace

Question 3

Regional feature of Mughal Architecture

Answer 3

1. The use of decorative brackets, balconeis etc in the architecture is an example in this regard.
2. The use of domes was avoided and instead replaced by Chatries. Kiosks (Chattris) is a borrowing from Rajput school of Architecture.
3. There was a fusion of Hindu - Islamic architecture specially under Akbar. One such influence is the Kalash palced on top of the domes which was borrowed from Hindu temple architecture.
4. During Akbars’ period we can see a fusion of regional styles into various Mughal builidings. In Red fort, we can see distinct Gujarati and Malwa influence.
5. Red sandstone from Dhaulpur was used in Shahjahanabad and Fatehpur Sikri. From the time of Jahangir, A visible shift was made towards the use of marble.
6. Last example of Mughal architecture is Safdarjung Tomb. The architecture suited to the climatic conditions of the land. The roms were large and airy. There were big gardens around the building and many fountains as well. The roofs had the khus khus grass to keep them cool.

Question 4

Reflection of contemporary life

Answer 4

1. It symbolizes the great power of the ruling class and the great divide between the rulers and the commoners. The elite and privileged class used burnt bricks, mortars and stones. Commoners used mud bricks or kuccha houses.
2. They reflect the increasing power of the emperor even in respect of his amirs. In Mughal age, monuments of the emperor’s were way above everybody else’s. While the emperors had the resources and capacity to obtain best of material and labour from any part of the country his nobles clearly could not.
3. We can see the impact of Akbar’s desire to be the religious leader of Indian Muslims as well. In Diwan I Aam at Sikri we can see that the emperor’s throne was placed in the western direction which gave religious supremacy as well. The use of many provincial styles in the building can be seen to reflect Akbar’s desire to be the emperor of whole India.
4. By ShahJahan’s time a stagnation had ocurred which can be seen in the lack of variety in the construction. The freshness and cultural fusion of the buildings gave way to aritificial grandeur. It appears that this was an attempt to hide problems of the empire.
5. Architecture decline by the Auranzeb’s time due to his personal indifference and economic condition. Whatever monuments are there show tradtitional style only and lack of creativity. Instead, the monuments of the regional principalities began to grow in thier attraction. This shows the decline of the empire.
6. There majestic projects reflected the cultural currents and tastes of the age in the ruling class. The emperors often personally paid attention to the plans and construction of the monuments. Thus, we have numerous paintings of Akbar observing the construction of Fatehpur Sikri Personally.
7. The construction made use of labour intensive technologies which indicate the abundance of unskilled and skilled labour of the age and that it had become an important industry. Large amount of labour was employed.
8. The architecture was suiteed to the climatic conditions of the land. The roms were large and airy. There were big gardens around the builidngs and many fountains as well. The roofs had the Khus Khus grass to keep them cool.
9. The Mughal Amirs used to construct their buildings clos to the buildings constructed by their ancestors. The foundation of any major project was laid only after consulting the astrological charts.

Question 5

Mosque Architecture

Answer 5

From the first mosque established in medina by prophet Muhammad to the present time, mosque architecture shows variation responding to regional climate, available elements etc.
Universal features
1. Direction: All the mosques have their orientation towards Mecca.
2. Tower of azan: Azan is the minaret tower from where people are called for prayer.
3. Domes: Domes with symbolic decoration are present in most of the mosques.
4. Convenience of light: The hanging lamp roofed part and open part to sky are common elements in mosque.
5. Calligraphy: The calligraphy which are mostly quoranic verses are common feature on walls of mosques.

Question 6

Regional influence in Mosque Architecture

Answer 6

1. Climatic variance: The most of the mosques in Kerala and Kashmir are constructed responding to climatic variation. The Aali mosque in Srinagar is noticeable for its wooden structure.
2. Regional motifs: The jami mosque of Ahmedabad bears kalash on top of the roof, lotus shaped dome and hanging bell that specifies influence of Hindu and jain temple.
3. Decoration: The decoration of arch, minaret and dome by Mughal in most of the north Indian mosques gives regional variety to mosques.
4. Fatehpur Sikri: The mosque here shows blend of Hindu and Jain architecture and are made from locally available sandstone called Sikri sandstone.

Question 7

Abul Fazl

Answer 7

Abul Fazal’s Ain-e-Akbari gives a vivid account of the socio-economic and religious life in medieval India.
Socio-economic life
1. Caste system was prevalent and 16 different sub castes arose from inter-marriages.
2. Choice of occupation was still limited by caste credentials.
3. Land was the major source of revenue. Raja Todarmal’s land measurement and assessment improved tax collection.
4. Literature, music, art and architecture commanded royal patronage.
Religion
1. Religious discrimination was ended by Akbar. Jazya and Pilgrim tax were abolished.
2. There was greater religious freedom. Akbar’s Din-e-Ilahi tried bringing people of different faith together.
3. Abul Fazal’s attempt at finding common ground between Hindu practices and islamic beliefs betrays the existing differences.
4. Hindus were tried under Hindu laws.
5. Abul Fazl enjoyed royal patronage of Akbar so one can imagine he was under obligation to praise the emperor. In such an attempt, he said Akbar could control rain at will. On the other hand Fazl emphasises on the need of rationality. This was a major inconsistency. Despite its shortcomings, Abul Fazl’s profound scholarship gives a great insight into the history of medieval India.

Question 8

Sher Shah Suri

Answer 8

1. He not only wanted to have large area under him, but also wanted to administer it well. He was influenced by the revenue and military policies of Alauddin Khalji.
2. Like Alauddin Khilji, he paid to army regularly to prevent dissatisfaction and dissent and interacted with it on regular basis.
3. He introduced measurement based revenue system so that peasant class is not over burdened.
4. He rebuilt the highway to Bengal from north India. This is also known as the Grand Trunk road. He also build many roads, planted trees and built Sarais.
5. He is credited with giving the name to Indian currency the name which it is known today – Rupiah.
6. His tomb at Sasaram in Bihar is major example of architecture during his time. It stands in the middle of an artificial lake and is known as the second Taj Mahal of India.

Question 9

Mughal painting

Answer 9

1. The Delhi sultanate period also witnessed the flowering of portrait and miniature paintings. However, what is amazing is that some of these painters tried to paint the classical ragas, thereby giving form and colour to such abstract conceptions as music. Seasons or baramasa paintings were similarly given artistic forms.
2. The Mughal school of painting from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century gave rise to the Indo-Persian school of miniature art. They produced landscapes together with human figures and costumes. When they came in touch with the traditional Indian styles, they became more natural. Signing on the miniatures as a tradition also started.
3. Mughal paintings show the construction scenes of the big monuments and also tell us about the used technologies in Fatehpur Sikri. Book illustrations played an important role. Karkhana’s were established for painting. It was un-islamic yet liberal interpretation of islam allows it. Court scenes, hunting scenes and wars were painted. Indian colours were developed.

Question 10

Mughal school was assimilation of Indian, Persian and European
elements

Answer 10

1. The sixteenth century marks a watershed in the development of the art of painting in India. An important painting from Humayun’s period is titled Princes of the House of Timur, which is executed on cloth and is suggested to be related to Mongol tradition.
2. Early phase was clearly influenced by Persian tradition which included symmetrical compositions, restricted movement of figures, etc.
3. Later, the paintings composed mainly of Indian traditions with touches of European influence, such as Naturalism and rhythm, clothing objects of daily use assuming Indian forms and violent movements.
4. Painting under Akbar’s period distinguished itself as a tradition from Persian painting as well as from Indian styles by presence of historical subject matter. The two most commonly used themes are daily events of the court and portraits of leading personalities.
5. During the period of Jahangir and Shahjahan, Mughal painting reached its zenith. Jahangir’s preference was of paintings of hunting scenes, birds and flowers. His paintings are realistic.
6. Under Shah Jahan, the colour of the paintings became more decorative and gold was more frequently used for decoration. In addition, paintings depicting portraits of female members and superimposition of animals was also found.
7. In its later phases, especially during 17th century, the Mughal painting was influenced by the European art. A large number of European paintings were either copied or adapted or even reinterpreted, sometimes by Mughal Painters.
8. One important feature of European impact that becomes
   noticeable in some Mughal Painting is the attempt to make them
   three-dimensional. Another influence was the effect of light and
   shade mostly utilised in fight scenes.

Question 11

Mughal vs Rajput

Answer 11

1. Rajasthani and Pahari are offshoots of Mughal miniature.
2. Mughal miniature is secular (Hunting campaigns, portraits or scenes from durbar), while Rajasthani and Pahari have religious touch. They included more religious themes as from life of Radha Krishna, Gita Govinda and Rajput lifestyle.
3. Mughal art was largely a royal art, while Rajput style was practiced by folks as well.
4. Mughal school features muted colours, giving it a shadow and depth, the Rajasthan school uses bold primary colours which give the painting an abstract look.
5. Mughal style is evolved from Persian Miniature painting style, so had marked influence of Persian style which was mixed with local styles. Rajasthani School has a considerable local influence on the other hand.
6. While Mughal school has focused on the splendour of the emperor and court, Pahadi and Rajput school expresses the emotions, nature, religious sentiments etc. Thus, Pahadi school could focus on life outside the royal sphere as well.