Hauz Khas Walk

Hauz Khas Complex  

Hauz Khas Complex houses a water tank, an   Islamic   seminary , a   mosque , a   tomb   and pavilions built around an urbanized village with medieval history traced to the   thirteenth century   of   Delhi Sultanate reign.   It was part of Siri, the second medieval city of India of the Delhi Sultanate of Allauddin Khilji   Dynasty   (1296–1316).  

Hauz Khas

Hauz Khas : T he words ‘Hauz': “water tank” (or lake) and ‘Khas':“royal” the “Royal tank”. The large water tank or reservoir was first built by Alauddin Khilji ‘s reign (1296–1316) to supply water to the newly built fort and city of Siri (the second city of Delhi). It was originally known as Hauz-i-Alai after Khilji. But   Firoz Shah Tughlaq   (1351–88) re–excavated the silted tank and cleared the clogged inlet channels. Several buildings like Mosque ,   madrasa and tombs were built overlooking the water tank or lake. Firoz Shah's tomb pivots the L–shaped building complex which overlooks the tank.

Madrasa

Madrasa Established in 1352, the Madrasa was one of the leading institutions of Islamic learning in the Delhi Sultanate. It was also considered the largest and best equipped   Islamic   seminary anywhere in the   world . There were three main Madrasa's in Delhi during Firoz Shah's time. One of them was the Firoz Shahi madrasa at Hauz Khas. After the sack of   Baghdad , Delhi became the most important place in the world for Islamic education. The village surrounding the Madarsa was also called Tarababad (city of joy). The madrasa structure has an innovative design. It was built in L-Shape as one contiguous structure on the south and east edges of the reservoir complex.

Pavilions

Pavilions The madrasa is flanked by the reservoir in the northern front and by a garden on its southern side at the second floor level. The garden houses six impressive pavilions. The pavilions with domes are in different shapes and sizes ( rectangular , octagonal and   hexagonal ) and on the basis of inscriptions are inferred to be   graves . Ruins of a courtyard with a rectangular plan are seen to the west of the three pavilions which are built of double columns. The pavilions and the court yard are conjectured to have been used as part of the madrasa in the past.

Mosque

Mosque The northern end of the madrasa is secured to a small mosque. The   qibla   of the Mosque projects towards the reservoir. A “C"-shaped layout of a double row of pillars on a raised podium forms the prayer hall, which is open to the sky. The qibla wall seen clearly from the reservoir side has five   mihrabs . The avant–garde setting of the central mihrab with a domed chhatri with open sides is seen in the form of a pavilion projecting into the reservoir.

Firoz Shah Tomb

Firoz Shah, who established the tomb, ascended the throne in 1351 when he was middle aged, as the third ruler of the   Tuglaq dynasty   and ruled till 1388. He was considered a well liked ruler. His wife was a   Hindu   lady.   Feroz Shah died at the age of ninety due to infirmities caused by three years of illness between 1385 and 1388. Interesting features seen on the northern and southern sides of the tomb, considered typical of the Tuglaq period layout, are the ceremonial steps provided at the ground level that connect to the larger steps leading into the reservoir There are four   graves   inside the tomb, one is of Feroz Shah and two others are of his son and grandson.