Kashmir At It's Royal Best
The Mughal (also spelt as
Moghul) emperors built gardens from Tehran to Agra but it is in
Kashmir, complemented by the lake and the mountains, that they reach
their perfection. Indeed after houseboats and the mountains it is
these gardens for which Kashmir is most famous.
The Garden's Layout
The gardens all follow the same rectangular layout with a series of
terraces rising one above the other up the hillside. Down the centre
flows a stone channel carrying water through a series of pools and
cascades. This system of carrying running water through the
artificial cascades, and the layout of the fountains, was introduced
to India by the artisans employed by the emperor Akbar. 'Bagh' means
garden. One can enjoy some of Srinagar's better gardens in a
leisurely bike ride around the shores of the lake.
Shalimar Bagh
Set some distance back from the lake, but reached by a small canal,
the Shalimar were built by Emperor Jehangir for his wife Nur Jahan,
'light of the world' in 1616. Although it is known today as the
'garden of love' it was originally named the Farah Bakhsh or
'delightful garden'.
The garden is built in four terraces with traditional water channel
running down the middle. The gardens measure 540 by 183 metres.
During the Mughal period the top terraces used be reserved for the
emperor and the ladies of the court and was the most magnificent. It
included a pavilion made of black stone in the middle of the tank.
Black Marble fluted pillars supported the pavilion, which was used
as a banquet hall.
Shalimar Bagh has an air of seclusion and repose, and its rows of
fountains and shaded trees seem to recede towards the snowcapped
mountains. A Son Et Lumeiere or sound and light show is put on here
every evening during the May to October tourist season.
Nishat
Bagh
The Nishat Bagh is another lovely garden with its 12 terraces
representing the 12 signs of the zodiac, which descend gradually and
seem to almost merge into the lake. It is situated on the banks of
world famous Dal Lake in the backdrop of Zabarwan hills. With its
flowerbeds, trees, fountains, the Nishat presents a dramatic sight.
The gardens were designed in 1633 by Asaf Khan, brother of Nur Jahan,
and follow the same pattern as the Shalimar gardens with a polished
stone channel running down the centre and a series of terraces.
It's the largest of the Mughal gardens measuring 548 metres by 338
metres, and often the most crowed. The walks beside the channel are
bordered with lines of cypresses and Chinars. Also found within its
vicinity are some remains of Mughal period buildings including a
double storey pavilion enclosed on two sides latticed windows.
Directly behind the garden is the Gopi Tirth, a small spring gushing
forth crystal clear water, which feeds the garden water.
Chasma Shahi
Smallest of the Srinagar Mughal gardens, measuring just 108 metres
by 38 metres, the Chasma Shahi, or 'Royal Spring', are well up the
hillside, above the Nehru Memorial Park. The fresh water spring in
these pleasant, quieter gardens is reputed to have medicinal
properties.
The gardens were laid out in 1632 by Ali Mardan Khan and include
three terraces, an aqueduct, waterfalls and fountains. The water
from the spring supplies the fountains and then goes through the
floor of the pavilion and falls to the lower terrace in a fine
cascade of five metres, over a polished black stone chute.
Some extensions have recently been made to the gardens. Like all the
gardens the Chasma Shahi is open from sunrise to sunset but unlike
the other gardens this is the only one, which charges admission.
There is a small shrine, the Chasma Sahibi, near the gardens, which
also has a fresh water spring.
