Two and A Half day shed

Two and A Half day shed is an attractive tourist attraction during Rajasthan travel. The shed is well known as Adhai din ka Jhonpra as it was build in two and a half days as per the order of Mohammad Gauri. This famous monument lies in Ajmer, in the west of Kwaja Sahib Dargah.

It’s a spectacular piece of architecture that exhibits an exquisite blend of Indo-Islamic style. It is said that it was originally a Sanskrit college that was build in 1155 within a temple enclosure. But in the year1193 it was destroyed by the order of Mohammad Gauri. It is believed that after destroying it, he wanted a mosque to be prepared on the same site for his prayer. Therefore he ordered the worker to prepare it within two and a half days. Thus the remains of surrounding temples were utilized to build this magnificent monument. That is one of the reasons for the completion of the monument in two and a half day, as the original infrastructure must have already existed. There is an interesting fact about this mosque that no two pillars are alike and retain the Hindu stylistic elements.

Travel two and a half day shed and you will be able to read Koranic verses chiseled on the 7-arched wall inside the mosque. A Persian artist Abu Bakr designed this beautiful mosque in a hurry.

The main entrance is through a simple gateway in the north that has been beautified with a number of small yellow limestone arches on the façade and a pillared hall. The archways are finely engraved with Kufi and Jughra inscription from the Holy Koran. This gate leads to a stairway, which in turn leads to a striking tower that is used by the Muezzin (mosque official) to chant prayer. The arched screen and distinct pillars with its ruined minarets has generated it as a splendid architectural masterpiece. The monument has a seven-arched wall with Islamic calligraphy. Six smaller arches of Arab origin flank the main arch.

The main prayer hall consists of stonewall that gives a net like appearance with carved rectangular panels on them. This has been done so as to provide a natural lighting effect, as it is a feature found in ancient Arabian mosques.

For this elegant monument the pillars with architectural fineness were assembled. These were collected from destroyed Hindu and Jain temples in the surrounding area. There are 124 pillars supporting 10 domes. These pillars depict Hindu and Jain architecture.

The interior of the edifice gives more resemblance of a Hindu temple than that of a mosque. There is a main chamber that is supported by a numerous columns. To give the monument more height, three pillars of uncommon design are placed over each other. These pillars are heavily decorated with design quite similar to Hindu and Jain rock temples. The roof of the hall is supported on square bays and the ceiling is also extensively carved. Below this is a pulpit that has been especially constructed to deliver the sermons of Quran.

In 1266 more screen and arches were added to beautify it. The archways are finely engraved and adorned with intricate carvings depicting Kufi and Jughra inscriptions from the holy Kuran. The quadrangular structure cloistered on all the four sides, with affront screen wall of seven pointed arches is one of the finest and the largest specimen of the early Muslim mosque that now exists and a great example of Indo-Islamic architecture. According to some of the legends the name of the mosque has been given after a festival that is carried on for two and a half days. Thus Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra is a wonderful site to visit during Rajasthan tourism.