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The Masjid-i-Jahan NumaThe Masjid-i-Jahan Numa, commonly known
as Jama Masjid of Delhi is the principal mosque of Old Delhi
in India. Commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan and
completed in the year 1656 AD, it is one of the largest and
best known mosques in India. It was built after demolition of
a very ancient Hindu temple known as Jamna Devi temple
dedicated to the Yamuna river. (There are also Jama Masjids in
many other cities with a history of Islamic rule, or large
Muslim populations.)
Masjid-i-Jahan Numa means "the mosque commanding a view of the
world", and the name Jama Masjid is a reference to the weekly
congregation observed on Friday (the yaum al-jum`a) at the
mosque. The courtyard of the mosque can hold up to twenty-five
thousand worshippers. The mosque also houses several relics in
a closet in the north gate, including a copy of the Qur'an
written on deer skin incurred on the construction in those
times was ten lakh rupees. (A lakh is one hundred thousand;
ten lakh therefore equals one million).
Shah Jahan built several important mosques in Delhi, Agra,
Ajmer and Lahore. The Jama Masjid's floorplan is very similar
to the Moti Masjid at Agra, but the Jama Masjid is the bigger
and more imposing of the two. Its majesty is further enhanced
because of the high ground that he selected for building this
mosque.
Architecture
Jama Masjid, northeast entrance The courtyard of the mosque
can be reached from the east, north and south by three flights
of steps, all built of red sandstone. The northern gate of the
mosque has 39 steps. The southern side of the mosque has 33
steps. The eastern gate of the mosque was the royal entrance
and it has 35 steps. These steps used to house food stalls,
shops and street entertainers. In the evening, the eastern
side of the mosque used to be converted into a bazaar for
poultry and birds in general. Prior to the 1857 War of Indian
Independence, there was a madrassah near the southern side of
the mosque, which was pulled down after the mutiny.
The mosque faces west. Its three sides are covered with open
arched colonnades, each having a lofty tower-like gateway in
the centre. The mosque is about 261 feet (80 m) long and 90
feet (27 m) wide, and its roof is covered with three domes
with alternate stripes of black and white marble, with its
topmost parts covered with gold. Two lofty minarets, 130 feet
(40 m) high, and containing 130 steps, longitudinally striped
with white marble and red sandstone, flank the domes on either
side. The minarets are divided by three projecting galleries
and are surmounted by open twelve-sided domed pavilions. On
the back of the mosque, there are four small minarets crowned
like those in the front.
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