The
Masjid-i-Jahan Numa commonly known as the Jama Masjid of Delhi is a
principal mosque in India. It was made by Shah Jahan around the same
time he commissioned Red Fort and was completed around 1656 AD. Jama
Masjid is the largest and best known mosque in India. Jama Masjid
derives its name from the Persian word Jum`a meaning Friday, a reference
to the Friday congregation of the large number of Muslims. It is truly
so because Jama Masjid has the capacity to accommodate 25,000 people for
prayers at a time. Location
Jama Masjid is situated in the bustling Old Delhi, quite close to Sadar Bazaar and just 500 m west of Red Fort.
Caution
It is mandatory for both men and women to remove their shoes and wear full sleeved clothing while covering your head. In case if anybody is not properly dressed, they can borrow head scarves from the mosque. The area is very congested so look out for eve teasers and pick-pockets.
Holy Architecture
The
architect of this magnificent mosque was Ustad Khalil. The mosque stands
on a rock or a high platform and has three imposing double-storeyed
gateways on the north, south and east to reach the huge courtyard. The
courtyard is enclosed by pillared corridors with domed pavilions at the
corners. 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. 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 (41 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. The floor of the mosque is covered with white and black marble ornamented to imitate the Muslim prayer mat; a thin black marble border is marked for the worshippers, which is three feet long and 1 ½ feet wide. In total there are 899 such spaces marked in the floor of the mosque to clearly demarcate space for all. In the northeast corner is a small pavilion containing relics of Prophet Mohammed, which is considered very sacred. These relics are two ancient copies of Quran written on deer skin, a red beard-hair of the prophet, his sandals and his footprint embedded in a marble slab.