Old Delhi: The Fusion of Hindu, Muslim and Jain Cultures

 D Bikram Lamba

When one thinks of Shahjahanabad (in Old Delhi), the city that was built by Emperor Shah Jahan and became the capital of the Mughal empire in 1648, they think of it as an Islamic city. The defining monument of the city might be the Jama Masjid but we forget that this was a city that was planned by the emperor keeping in mind the various trades and professions of its residents.

Every class of resident had a designated space in the city. For example, indigo dye traders conducted their business in Katra Neel, the Khatris and the Mathurs lived in Roshanpura – they were the scribe and the lawyer class, Sitaram Bazaar was inhabited by Kashmiri Pandits and Brahmins, the Jains lived in Dharam Pura. The elites of that time, including literary elites, lived in Koocha Chelan. The farmers lived in Maliwara and you would find the Punjabi traders living in Punjabi Katra.

Every area also had its own places of worship. And this is what we wanted to highlight. We wanted to let more people know about the Hindu heritage in Shahjahanabad. The temples are also so beautiful, such intricate art works. They are amazing.

Artworks depicting the Vaishnav life in Charan Das ki Baghichi
that have now been painted over

However, so many of us are not aware of them. Many temples are not listed on the Archaeological Survey of India website as heritage sites and there is no proper care for them. For instance, I visited Charan Das ki Baghichi in 2018. It was built in the mid-18th century during the rule of Muhammad Shah and there were beautiful paintings depicting the Vaishnav life. When I revisited a few days back, I found that the artworks had been painted over. They are no more. We wanted to bring to light how our heritage is not being conserved and the need to do so.

Charan Das ki Baghichi, a Mughal tomb in honour of a Hindu saint.

The Jain mandirs of Shahjahanabad are its best-kept secret. There are so many of them and every single one is glorious. These Jain temples are really well preserved because the Jains are a moneyed class. So they are able to afford the upkeep of these temples. The preservation policies are excellent. When you visit these temples, you can imagine what the havelis and the palaces must have looked like. That makes it a very important resource to understand more about the architectural heritage of Old Delhi.

Naya Jain Mandir in Dharampura.

In many cases, the Mughals did not give money to build these places of worship. The temples were constructed by wealthy merchants and the Jain panchayats. But without the active patronage of the emperor, none of this would have been possible.

Naya Jain Mandir in Dharampura.

So many people did not know about these Jain temples. For example, the pietra dura inlays in these temples are still intact. A scholar of the Taj Mahal reached out to me. They were surprised to see how well-preserved these inlay artworks were, while some in the Taj Mahal were already beginning to discolour.

This means that the Jain temples were not destroyed in 1857 [when the British laid waste to sections of the city during the First War of Independence]. This is not very long back in time. Only a few years ago we had such beautiful architecture in our midst. They are also a treat for art lovers – a wonderful confluence of history and art.

Pietra dura inlay work in one of the Jain temples dating back to the late Mughal era.

ost of us are not aware of Jhajjarwala Mandir. It is very close to the Jama Masjid. Bashiruddin Ahmed wrote about how the temple houses a beautiful black image of Lord Krishna. This image is supposed to be very famous too and I decided to take a look at it myself.

I had already been to this area but never found any temple that was called Jhajjarwala. There is a Jhajjarwala shivalaya in Chandi Chowk that Sam discovered but I couldn’t find anything behind the Jama Masjid. So I came back and read about the temple again. I revisited the area and decided to stay at one of the hotels so I could fully dedicate myself to finding this temple.

One early morning, when the poojas started, I went into a lane that seemed to be attracting all the worshippers. I asked them, “In which temple can I find the image of black Lord Krishna?” An old gentleman pointed towards a temple in response. Interestingly, I had already visited the temple – it was the ISKCON temple.

I went in and discovered that the original temple had been revamped and expanded. It was now a small part of the ISKCON temple premises. I was delighted to finally see the image, especially during its shringhar. It was such a moving experience.

See, we don’t usually associate such images from the Mughal era. But this is how it was.

An image of Lord Krishna at Jhajjarwala Mandir, now known as the ISKCON temple

The shivalayas that were built in this era were unlike any other. They were built within pavilions which are very Mughal-looking. Around these pavilions would have been gardens, havelis, and dharamshalas. They have now been encroached and only the shivalayas remain.

All of this is very fascinating to me as a student of history. I find it so interesting to examine how things have changed, what are our memories of these structures, and what people remember about them.

For example, if you visit the Ghanteshwar Temple, people will say that the shivling there was made by a rock that was brought by the Pandavas themselves. These are our memories and oral history is so fascinating. I think our collective memory is being distorted and I believe they need to be preserved. Instagram can be a great platform to document these memories and remind people of our heritage.

I went there in 2019 just before I came to Canada. The priest and I had a long discussion about Radha and Krishna. I am very much interested in Bhakti and Sufism, to me Krishna is the symbol of love. Early in my childhood, I was told that there are 1,24,00 prophets who were sent to each corner of the world; that no part was without out. I respect Lord Krishna and Lord Rama in this light. The Bal Gopal image of Krishna is especially beautiful to me.

Dhummi Lal Khanna Shivalaya built during the reign of Akbar II.

I also went back to Ladli Ji ki Mandir and was greeted by a lady who now looks after the temple. She is the tenth generation of temple guardians. I happened to be visiting on the jal vihar occasion of Ladli Ji. This is a summer celebration where Radha is decked up in flowers and the Shri Krishna Leela is observed in the water. The temple was crowded with devotees and one of them recognised me.

She pointed out that many Muslims who are also devotees of Lord Krishna. IThey said only the fortunate get to have the rajbhog. This is the kind of love and affection that I have received on my visits to these temples.

This holds great significance in present times. Religion does not divide – if faith cannot make you a better person then what is the point of it?

In 2016, I visited Neeli Chhatri. It is supposed to be the place where Yudhishthira had performed a yajna and the fire has not been extinguished ever since. I gave something in offering and the priest blessed me. A. He looked at me but did not say anything. It did not matter to him that I was of a different faith.

Every place of worship is revered to me. It is a place of spirituality and faith. No matter where we go, we ask blessings from our own gods. Yet standing in any place of worship fills you with a different kind of energy and you feel closer to your god. That is the beauty of faith.

Ladli Ji ki Mandir in Katra Neel

These places symbolise secularism and composite cultures. People are rediscovering their own cities and looking at these heritage sites with a new perspective.

Everybody is tired of negativity and they want to do something to counter it.

Shahjahanabad is a tiny part of Delhi yet we keep discovering new things every day. For me, heritage is heritage. There is no Hindu and Muslim in heritage, it is our heritage. Indians have built these monuments and they are looking after them today. We must glorify our own heritage, they are a matter of great pride.

Naya Jain Mandir in Dharampur.

Even as Hindutva proponents loathe the Mughal period, in the heart of Mughal Shahjahanabad – or the walled Old City of Delhi, is a glorious tradition of at least a 100 Jain and Shaivite temples that were built during the period. I also visited the rare Charandas temple in the area – a saint who lived in early 18th century and whose followers reject the caste system. To their horror, a slapdash paint job masqueraded as the “restoration” of perhaps the oldest Vaishnav frescoes in Old Delhi. All these temples are in the heart of Islamic Delhi. The temples not only reveal the vibrant significance of the Jain and Shaivite communities which resided in Shahjahanabad during the Mughal period, but is an architectural revelation of the design and aesthetic of the time, and also the cultural lifestyle of that period.

Standing in the foreground of the oldest Jain mandir of Shahjahanabad, built during the reign of Emperor Shahjahan, a regular vuisitor tod that “when one of the Jain soldiers in Shahjahan’s army kept three idols in a tent for prayers. Urdu then meant camp, which is how it got its name Urdu temple (camp temple) and Urdu Bazaar (camp bazaar) until Agarwal Jain merchants built a grand concrete temple in the same spot as the tent.”

The three idols date back to 1436, and the temple was built in 1656, with active or passive patronage and permission from the emperor. When the British East India Company took over, the proclamation made in Shahjahanabad was, “Created by god, land of the emperor and command of the Company. In other words, the land still symbolically belonged to the Emperor.”

The questyion that one faces is whether an emperor or king can be associated with the buildings and architecture of the time. Some people have asked can these temples be considered “Mughal” only because they were built during Mughal rule? Did the emperors patronise or fund the temples, they ask?

But the timing of when and where a monument is located plays a big part in its story – the term Mughal does not just refer to the royal family, but also to the Mughal court and empire. A Victorian building is called so, not because it was commissioned by Queen Victoria specifically but because it belongs to the era.

The Mughal rule was spread across 300 years – while Aurangzeb may have terrorised Hindus, the last Mughal decades had rulers like Akbar Shah II, father of Bahadur Shah Zafar, and Muhammad Shah Rangeela, who was hailed as a patron of the arts.

The erstwhile affluent Jain and Khatri community leaders played a crucial role in the Mughal empire; the rich community members bankrolled the Mughal empire, even underwriting the Mughal economy; including military aid from these semi-independent rulers. Their clout and privilege can be seen in the heart of Shahjahanabad, designed and built by Emperor Shahjahan when he moved the capital from Agra to Delhi in 1648, with an elaborate blueprint that included specific areas for temples and mosques, amongst all the trappings of a brand new city of fort-palaces, ornate gates, markets, buildings, boulevards, waterways and gardens.

The temples in Shahjahanabad were not only designated in specific designed areas – Jain temples in Dharmapura were given the land for the community’s services to the Imperial court since Aurangzeb’s time, and Shaivite temples in Katra Neel (the location got its name from the indigo traders who first set up shop here) – some emperors even took an active role in temple construction, says Safvi. Most notable were Akbar Shah II, Mohammad Shah Rangeela, and Bahadur Shah Zafar, beginning in the early 19th century.

The decorative Naya Jain Mandir, in Dharmapura, built in 1807, is a classic example of the clout and privileges enjoyed by the wealthy and influential Jains in the Mughal administration. Raja Harsukh Rai, an Agarwal Jain, who built the temple and who was the Imperial Treasurer in the court of Akbar Shah II. While there were several other Jain temples around, Rai wanted his temple to be different and he persuaded Shah II to be allowed to build a giant shikhara (steeple) atop the temple, even though the Mughal decree only allowed the inverted Mughal lotus dome.

Spanning the interiors of the ornately sculpted pillars, its delicate, airy tracery carved stone entrance – hard to believe it’s made of stone; a similar one is found in Fatehpur Sikri; apart from the pierced foliage on arches and colonnades, made of polished white marble and classic Mughal inlay work in crushed semiprecious stone. As you can see, every inch of the walls and ceilings are richly painted with blue and gold, and this temple is a true reflection of what Mughal life would have been at the time.

These living monuments should be be listed and preserved, as they blow away the Hindutva belief that all temples were demolished by Mughal rulers. But crucially, they need to be preserved because they are symbols of a rich history.

The Archaeological Society of India (ASI) and other institutions have not listed these temples as heritage sites and they have been largely left to the community’s caretakers. A hundred and more have survived but need a conservationist’s eye, while keeping with the community’s practices and aestheticism in mind. The list of temples is found in Maulvi Zafar Hasan’s book, Monuments of Delhi, who was an assistant superintendent in the ASI and published in 1916.

The list is glittering: from the Digambar Jain Meru Temple built in 1845, even though the temple’s idols date back to 1491; and its walls, ceilings and marble fluted columns shimmer with intricate paintings of religious scenes all over. The buff sandstone building and intricate paintings on arches reflect what the Red Fort would have looked like. The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has restored the interiors though it is unprotected and continues to be a living monument.

Other temples which need to be preserved include Ghanteshwar Mahadev Shivalaya, built during Bahadur Shah Zafar’s time but the temple is built over a Shiva lingam that is probably the oldest in Delhi, say scholars, and it might be the same ‘Visvesara Lingam of Vidyapura’ mentioned in the Saubhare Samhita and the Padma Purana, say Safvi and Dalrymple. Certainly, says the latter, this Shaivite locality of Katra Neel was known as Vidyapura before Shahjahanabad was built.

Then there’s Khunnji Shivalaya built during the reign of Akbar Shah II, Baba Lala Jasrai Shivalaya in the same period and as the priest says the marble was brought from Red Fort, given either by the King or by a devotee; Charan Das ki Baghichi and more. The Shaivite temples were designed to be built in Shahjahanabad in enclosed walled gardens and in grand havelis too, but today, many of them have been encroached and only the Shivalayas remain with the gardens all but vanished.

Paintings in Digambar Meri Temple

The most fascinating is also the Ladliji Ka Mandir, one of Delhi’s main Radha temples. It’s also alluring to Muslim devotees of Krishna – like  Safvi. She explains the meaning of this as we climb up the steps to the temple and its courtyard haveli. Muslim Krishna devotees believe in the Hadith, sayings of the Prophet, which mentions that Allah sent 124,000 prophets to Earth and that Ram and Krishna were two of them. This is popular among the Muslim community in the Doab region.

The temple dates back to the reign of Emperor Ahmad Shah Bahadur, in 1756, and was built by Naval Goswami Pradyumanji, whose 10th generation descendants still live in a barely glued together house around the courtyard garden of the temple. Seema Goswami, the daughter-in-law is excited as the family, along with friends, prepares for the anointing of the special day, Flower Shringar of Krishna and Radha. Krishna is a symbol of love and is a metaphor for love both in the Sufi and Bhakti traditions.

As jasmine flowers are threaded on leaves from the banyan tree, to leaf garlands and intricate petals interspersed on the flower jewellery to be adorned by the idols in the evening, the priest invites us for the bhog (religious meal offering). The bhog is served on a patravali or a dry leaf plate and consists of besan puri, arbi, bhindi, pakora, dahiwale pakora, panna and kheer. Seema is thrilled to serve the bhog to us, the guests. “We’ve been carrying this tradition for over 300 hundred years, and it’s our pride that we can still serve the gods,” the priest says.

As the excitement bubbles in the quarter in the near-ruin Goswami haveli, even as parts of the temple have fallen, its paintings faded, and newer concrete structures and steel bars shut the main temple, the Goswami heirs carry on the noble and syncretic culture of Shahjahanabad – a fusion of Hindu, Muslim, Jain intermingling in culture, communities, and localities – all keepers of history.

It’s indeed an elegant, nonchalant and traditional resistance to the battle cry of xenophobic Hindutva.

(Dr. Bikram Lamba, deemed human encyclopaedia, is well known political and business strategist who has been advisor to 3 Prime Ministers and two Presidents.  He has authored 8 books, over 6000 articles, and has two YouTube Channels and a podcast channel. He can be contacted at torconsult@rogers.com)