महाराणा कुम्भा (हरविलास सारदा - मेवाड़ साम्राज्य के अद्वितीय विजेता, निर्माता व विद्वान्)

Maharana Kumbha.
of Oka Rani, his queen, so designated from
being of Oka Mandal, (Kathiawar) near the
Land's End of the Hindus. A small lake in
the keep is called Sāwan Bhādoon, and well
merits the name of the two chief months of
the monsoon; for, in the middle of June it is
yet full of water. On the most elevated knoll
to the east are the remains of an alarm tower
which still bears Kumbha's name. From this
point the eye, occasionally piercing the swift-
scudding clouds, has glimpses of the ruined
altars and palaces of the brave race who on
the spot whence I surveyed them, had fought
and bled in their defence."¹
A blending of all beauties, streams and dells,
Fruit, foliage, crag, wood, cornfield, mountain, vine,
And chiefless castles, breathing stern farewells,
From gray, but leafy walls, where Ruin greenly dwells."
An equestrian statue of Maharana Kumbha
with those of two other Maharanas and a
bigger one of the Purohit or the family priest
of Kumbha in a humble straw shed on the
descent from Achalgarh to Dilwara still
receive divine honours.
¹ Tod's Travels in Western India, p. 94.

• 123

Maharana Kumbha.
Col. Tod describing his visit to Achalgarh,
says:—"As the sun dispelled the watery
darkness which enveloped us, the landscape
of this magic realm was to the last degree
imposing, every change of position unfolding
some new object. First, Jain shrines of
Dilwara (being S. 80° W. six miles distant),
backed by the peak of Arbudha Mātā; the
Guru Sikra (N. 15° E. four miles), with many
other pinnacles scattered over the summit of
this fairy land, each with its name and its
legend. On the descent, I paid my homage to
the representative of one of the worthies of
Mewar, an equestrian brass statue of Rana
Kumbha, who within these walls had often
stood the brunt of war. It was pleasing to
witness the homage still rendered within these
now desecrated walls, to departed worth;
prayers are made, and daily oblations of
saffron brought to the defender of Achalgarh,
and these not by any of his decendants, who
are ignorant of this deed, but by others utter-
ly unconnected with him, actuated by the
traditional record of his glory or greatness.
The humble straw shed which covers these
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Kumbhalgarh

Maharana Kumbha.
effigies conveys a finer lesson to the mind
than if they were enshrined in marble."¹
At Abu, Kumbha built the temple of
Kumbhaswámi (which still stands) and a
large tank named, Ramakund, in front of it.²
He excavated four other tanks there.² He
remitted the pilgrim tax levied at Abu.²
KUMBHALGARH.¹
The highest monument of Kumbha's
military and constructive genius, however, is
the wonderful fortress of Kumbhalgarh or
Kumbhalmer, second to none in strategical
importance or historical renown. It was to
this impregnable fortress that the Maharanas
of Mewar always turned their eyes, when
Udaipur became unsafe and Chitor unten-
able. It is to Kumbhalmer that the Maha-
ranas, from Udai Singh to Ráj Singh, sent
the royal households, when the entire might
of the Moghal Empire was used for the des-
truction of their country. It was the ambition
¹ Tod's Travels in Western India, pp. 95-96.
² Kumbha's Chitorgarh Kirtisthambha Inscription (Vs. 12
and 13). Near the Ramakund, stands a statue of the Parmar
king Dhārāvarsha armed with a bow, and three stone buffaloes.
125

Maharana Kumbha.
of Akbar, the greatest of the Moghul Emperors
of India to take it, when his hosts, led by the
greatest of his generals, the renowned Mán
Singh of Amber and supported by the armies
of the Rathods of Marwar and Bikaner, the
Kuchhwahas of Amber (Jaipur) and other
Rajput Chiefs, invaded the country of the
immortal Pratap.
The cunning of Akbar succeeded in
raising against this devoted land most of its
Rajput neighbours, and the fortress fell. It
was, however, soon recovered by Pratap; and
the successors of Akbar—Jahangir with all
his vain glory, and Aurangzeb with all his
craft and cunning—failed to make any im-
pression on this historic fortress. When
Prince Khurram, ennobled with the title of
Shah Jahan (king of the world), with all the
resources that the empire could command,
supported by Emperor Jahangir at the base
of operations, Ajmer, overran the country
of Pratap's noble son, Amra; or when
that destroyer of the Moghal Empire,
Aurangzeb, collecting the Imperial armies
from all parts of the Empire, vainly launched
126

Maharana Kumbhá.
his legions against the chivalrous Maharana
Raj Singh in an attempt to deprive this
sacred soil of its ancient independence, this
stronghold, the ever memorable Kumbhalgarh,
provided shelter to those who were dear to
the noble defenders of their fatherland. This
fortress, which has played a part in history,
seldom rivalled and never surpassed, was the
bulwark of Mewar throughout the Moghal
rule in India.
"When they were young and proud,
Banners on high and battles passed below ;
But they who fought are in a bloody shroud,
And those which waved are shredless dust ere now,
And the bleak battlements shall bear no future blow."
Kumbhalgarh and the Kirtisthambha
(Tower of Victory) at Chitor, are the two
pillars on which the fame of Kumbha as a
great commander and a great sovereign rests.
Kumbhalgarh, situated on the 25°9′ N. and
73°35′ E., about 60 miles north of Udaipur,
stands on a high peak of the most westerly
range of the Aravalli hills, on the site of an
ancient stronghold, which, according to tradi-
tion, was built by the famous Jain king
Samprati, who flourished in the third
127

Maharana Kumbha.
century¹ of the Christian era. Kumbha began
the construction of the fort in S. 1500 (1443
A. D.), and it was completed on the 13th of
the dark half of Chaitra, S. 1515 (A.D. 1458).²
It was designed and built by Kumbha's
architect Mandana.
Kumbhalgarh is defended by a series of
walls with battlements and bastions built on
the slopes of a hill, and contains a domed
palace and buildings which are reached though
several gateways along a winding approach.
The palace in it built by Kumbha and rebuilt
by the late Maharana Fateh Singh stands
3,568 feet above sea level, and commands a
fine panoramic view of the wild and rugged
scenery of the Aravallis³ and the sandy plains
of Marwar. Below this peak, on every side
and enlosed within a high battlemented wall,
so thick as to allow 8 horsemen to ride abreast,
¹ Samprati was the second son of Emperor Asoka who
died in 236 or 237 B. C. His eldest son Kunal reigned for
8 years and was succeeded by Samprati who also reigned
for 8 years.
² Chitorgarh Inscription, Cunningham's Archæological
Survey Report, Vol. XXIII, plate 21.
³ The names of several neighbouring hills are given in
the Chitorgarh Inscription as Nila, Shweta, Hemkut, Himvat,
Nishad, Gandhamadan.
128

Maharana Kumbha.
the uneven ground is studded with numerous
old temples and reservoirs, barracks for
the garrison, grain stores and other domed
buildings.
The formidable bastions in the battlement-
ed wall of Kumbhalgarh, as the illustration
on the opposite page will show, are peculiar
in shape and are so built that the enemy may
not be able to scale them by means of ladders.
Outside the fortress, at some little distance
on a mound, is a fine temple consisting of a
square sanctuary with a vaulted dome and a
colounade of elegant pillars all round. Describ-
ing this ancient temple, Col. Tod says:—"The
design of this temple is truly classic. It
consists only of the sanctuary, which has a
vaulted dome and colonnaded portico all round.
The architecture is undoubtedly Jain, which
is as distinct in character from the Brahminical,
.as their religion. There is a chasteness and
simplicity in this specimen of monotheistic
worship, affording a wide contrast to the
elaborately sculptured shrines of the Saivas,
and other polytheists of India. The extreme
want of decoration best attests its antiquity,
129

Maharana Kumbha.

entitling us to attribute it to that period
when Samprati Raja, of the family of Chandra-
gupta, was paramount sovereign over all
these regions, (two hundred years before
Christ); to whom tradition ascribes the most
ancient monuments of this faith, yet
existing in Rajasthan and Saurashtra. The
proportions and forms of the columns are
especially distinct from the other temples,
being slight and tapering, instead of massive,
the general characteristic of Hindu architecture;
while the projecting cornices, which would
absolutely deform shafts less slight, are
peculiarly indicative of the Takshac architect.
A massive monolithic emblem of black marble
of the Hindu Jivapitri, had been improperly
introduced into the shrine of the worshippers
of the 'spirit alone.' Being erected on the
rock, and chiselled from the syenite on which
it stands, it may bid defiance to time.
There was another sacred structure in its
vicinity, likewise Jain, but of a distinct
character; indeed, offering a perfect contrast
to that described. It was three stories in
height; each tier was decorated with numerous

130

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Katargarh and the Vedi.

Maharana Kumbha.
massive low columns, resting on a sculptured
panneled parapet, and sustaining the roof of
each story, which being very low, admitted
but a broken light to break the pervading
gloom."¹
In the central open space of the fort, on
a conical hillock, stands the inner fort of
Katárgarh. It is crowned with a palace called
the Jháli-ká-Máliá or the palace of the Jháli
queen.
There are seven gates leading up to the
fort. The principal (exterior) one, called the
Hanumán Pol, from the image of the god
Hanuman which with the gates was brought
by Kumbhá from Mandor² and set up there,
faces the south at the head of a road which
winds gradually up through the gorge from the
town of Kailwara at its base—a place of great
historical interest. Between Kailwara and
the Hanumán Pol there are two gates, the first
being Aret Pol, or barrier thrown across the
first narrow ascent about a mile from Kail-
¹ Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, Vol. I, pp. 670-71.
² Kumbhalgarh Inscription, v. 3.
131

Maharana Kumbha.
wara. The second is called the Hulla Pol;
the third is the Hanumán Pol, between which
and the summit there are four more gates,
viz., tha Gate of Victory, the Sanguinary
Gate, the Gate of Ráma and the Chaugán Pol.
Colonel James Tod says: "It would be
vain to attempt describing the intricacies of
approach to this far-famed abode, whose
exterior is delineated by the pencil. A massive
wall, with numerous towers and pierced
battlements, having a strong resemblance to
the Etruscan, encloses a space of some miles
extent below, while the pinnacle or Sikra
rises like the crown of the Hindu Cybele, tier
above tier of battlements, to the summit,¹
which is crowned with the Badal Mahal or
'Cloud Palace' of the Rana. Thence the
eye ranges over the sandy deserts and the
chaotic mass of mountains which are on all
sides, covered with the cactus, which luxu-
riates amidst the rocks of the Aravalli."
As one ascends the fort hill, there is on
¹ Tod's Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan (original
edition), Vol. I., page 670.
132

Maharana Kumbha.
the left, Tārā burj called after Tara, the
heroic consort of prince Prithviraj, son of
Rana Rai Mal and grandson of Maharana
Kumbha. Before we reach the Chaugan Pol
we come to Nārchhālī, a small empty reservoir,
from where, it is said, the tiger (nār) and the
goat (chhālī) used to drink water together
before the fort was built. After crossing the
Chaugan Pol, the visitor has to his right the
Topkhānā, where a cannon is pointed out
as a trophy brought from Nagor. Further
onwards is Nava-choki, which is really a
temple dedicated to Navadurga. Here is a
small fragmentary inscription stone in the
pavement of the hall floor. Therein only two
names can be traced, viz., those of Mokal,
father of Kumbha, and Prayāga, i.e., Allahabad.
The last gate, as stated above, is the Pāgdā
Pol, so called because the Mahārānā here
dismounts from his horse before entering the
palace.
Just inside the Hanumān Pol on the
ridge below the palace is situated the Vedi, or
the place where the Yajna in consecration of
the fort was performed by Kumbhā when it
133

Maharana Kumbha.
was completed. It is a beautiful three-storied
building of great architectural merit; each tier
is decorated with numerous massive low
columns, resting on a sculptured paneled
parapet and sustaining the roof of each storey,
which being very low, admits but a broken
light to break the pervading gloom.
A memorable structure built by Maharana
Kumbha, in A.D. 1458, in the gorge below the
fort on the brow of the mountain overlooking
the pass, is the Mámádeva Temple. The
court of the temple is formed by a strong wall
enclosing a large area. The interior of this
wall was covered with immense slabs of
black marble, on which was inscribed the
history of Mewar from the time of Guhil,
the founder of the royal family, to Maharana
Kumbha.
Col. Tod thus describes the state of these
tablets when he visited this place on 19
October, 1819 A.D. “What a sight for the
antiquary! not one of the many tablets was
entire; the fragments were strewn about, or
placed in position to receive the flesh-pots of
134

Maharana Kumbha.
the sons of Ishmael, the mercenary Rohilla
Afghan.”¹
“The tablets and most of the images of
the divinities referred to by Tod, which were
for long lying utterly uncared for, were
removed by Pandit Gaurishankar Ojhá to the
Museum at Udaipur. The fragments of the
tablets, so far as a through search could
bring to light, were picked up and pieced
together by him, and can now be easily
deciphered there. The importance of these
inscriptions can never be overrated. They set
forth the history of Mewar from the time of
Guhila, the founder of the Udaipur family,
to Rana Kumbha.”²
Behind the temple of Mamadeva is an
odi, or raised dais where Tārā, wife of Prince
Prithviraj, elder brother of Maharana Sāngā,
used to shoot tigers
On quitting the temple of Mamadeva,
attention is attracted by a simple monumental
¹ Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan, Vol. I., p. 672.
² Progress Report of the Archæological Survey of India,
Western Circle, for 1908-9, by Dr. D. R. Bhandarkar.
135

Maharana Kumbha.
shrine on the opposite side of the valley, and
almost in the gorge of the pass. “It was most
happily situated, being quite isolated, over-
looking the road leading to Marwar, and
consisted of a simple dome of very moderate
dimensions supported by columns, without
any intervening object to obstruct the view
of the little monumental alter arising out of
the centre of the platform. It was the
Sybilline temple of Tivoli in miniature. To
it, over rock and ruin, I descended. Here
repose the ashes of the Troubadour of Mewar,
the gallant Prithviraj, and his heroine wife,
Tara Bai,¹ whose lives and exploits fill many
a page of the legendary romances of Mewar.”²
In the shrine is a memorial stone on which
various small figures are sculptured on each
one of its four sides, with small inscriptions
above, descriptive of them. Thus e. g, on
the east side it bears five figures, the central
one of which rides a horse. He is called
¹ This fair 'star' (Tara) was the daughter of Rao
Soortan, the chieftain of Badnor. For some account of Tarabai
and Prince Prithviraj see my monograph on "Maharana Sanga",
Chapter IV. Prithviraj was one of the most heroic Rajputs
that adorn the history of Rajputana.
² Tod's Rajasthan, Vol. I, p. 673.
136

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Chitorgarh.