| Dargah of Qutb-Sahib (Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar
Kaki) |
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| Located near Gandak ki Baoli in the Mehrauli
village, about 400 meters from Adham Khan's tomb lies the Dargah
of Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki, popularly known as Qutb Sahib.
Surnamed as Kaki, Qutb Sahib is held in high esteem and has
been highly regarded for centuries, as he was the disciple and
spiritual successor of Khwaja Mu'inu'd Din Chishti of Ajmer.
Born at Ush in Persia, he came to India in the late 12th century
and lived here during the reign of Emperor Iltutmish (1211-1236),
the founder of the Slave dynasty. The Dargah is considered to
be a very sacred place by pilgrims of different religions. It
is said that if a pilgrim who truly believes in the saint, makes
a wish and ties a thread near the grave, his wishes will be
fulfilled. After the fulfillment of the wish, the pilgrim should
return to thank the thread and untie the thread. One can see
many colorful threads tied in the marble screens. |
| Qutb Sahib died in 1236 and his grave is the
main shrine of the dargah, which was decorated by many later
rulers. At present the grave lies in the middle of a rectangular
enclosure, which is beautifully embellished and surmounted by
a dome built about 60 years ago. The western wall is quite attractive
as it is decorated with colored floral tiles added on Aurangzeb's
orders. The dargah has many other structures like the assembly
house, robe chamber, mosque, drum house tanks and several imposing
gates. The northern gate of the Dargah bears an inscription
that declares that Shaikh Khalil, a descendent of saint Faridu'd-Din
Shakarganj, the successor of Qutb Sahib built it in 1542. Close
to the Dargah's Ajmeri Gate, to its left, is Moti Masjid. Aurangzeb's
son, Bahadur Shah I, built it in 1709. With three arched openings
and double minars, the mosque is an imitation of Aurangzeb's
Moti Masjid at Red Fort. |
| Just as in the Nizamuddin shrine, there are
many graves within the premises of this dargah for there were
many who wanted to be buried close to the saint. Among the those
buried here are the Mughal emperors Bahadur Shah I (1707-12),
Shah Alam II (1759-1806), Akbar II (1806-37) and many persons
of royal blood. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah II too
wanted to be buried here as he prepared his own grave but after
the 1857 war the British deported him to Rangoon where he died
and was buried. |
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