Thomas Daniell

“ From the gateway you enter a vast area cut down through the solid rock of the mountain to make room for an immense temple, of the complex pyramidal form, whose wonderful structure, variety, profusion, and minuteness of ornament, beggar all description. This temple, which is excavated from the upper region of the rock, and appears like a grand building, is connected with the gateway by a bridge left out of the rock, as the mass of the mountain was excavated. ”

“ This Mosque is in a very singular, as well as ancient, style of building. The Minars are united by the lofty pointed arch, over which on the inside there is a terraced platform for the convenience of the crier to walk when engaged in calling the Mussulmen to prayers. ”

“ But by a previous arrangement with the Rajah of that capital, the difficulties to it that remained were chiefly occasioned by the surface of the country, which, though truly formidable, were calculated to excite rather than discourage the curiosity of those who take delight in observing nature under every variety of aspect; and more especially in situations where she is so seldom seen, except by those who cannot appreciate her beauties. ”

“ This view, which is one of the first shewn to a stranger, must strike him with astonishment, whether he considers the vast labour which must have been bestowed on it in mere excavation, the rock being of red granite ”

“ When water by such high sanction had acquired divine attributes, and the sacred fluid was believed capable of washing away the blemishes of sin, we cannot wonder that the unreasoning multitude, impressed with such opinions, should behold the foaming torrent, falling in thunder down the precipice, with equal dread and veneration ”

“ The plain below, extending as far as the eye can reach, is one vast uninterrupted jungle; a rank, entangled, and impenetrable vegetation, swarming with its peculiar inhabitants, many of which are no less terrible to man than to themselves ”

“ War, which is the scourge of art and science, rendered the further gratification of his curiosity, however inoffensive its object, in these parts dangerous. The fighting men were preparing for resistance, and the rest of the people, seeking their safety by flight, were removing in a body to the opposite side of the river, by means of their temporary bridge. ”

“ It would be difficult for those who have never seen a vast river precipitated down a rocky steep of considerable elevation, to form an adequate idea of such a spectacle, accompanied by a noise so tremendous, that, comparatively, all other sounds are but whispers. ”

“ The right-hand side is adorned with a very full and complex sculpture of the battle of Rama and Ravana, in which Hanuman makes a very conspicuous figure. Proceeding from this field of battle, the heads of elephants, lions, and some imaginary animals, are projected as though supporting the temple, till you come to a projection (6) , in the side of which, sunk in the rock, is a large group of figures but much mutilated. This projection was connected with the apartments on the right-hand side of the area by a bridge (7) , which has given way, and the ruins of it now fill up the sides of the area. ”

“ The first apartment is eighty feet in length and thirty wide, the interior is not so long; a pedestal is remaining, but no figure in the recess of the idol, the door of which is guarded by two gigantic figures, called Dwara-Pala, or door-keepers. ”

“ The eye is here on a level with the tops of most of the surrounding mountains; the forms of which are more pointed and irregular than those passed before, and resemble the tumultuous agitation of the ocean, roused by a tempest. The general aspect of the whole is dreary and vast; vegetation is scanty ”

“ The effect of this Gate, at a distance, is grand, from the bold projection of its superior parts; and its ornaments, though numerous, are applied with so much art and discretion, as to form the happiest union of beauty and grandeur. ”

“ Since this view was drawn, the Nabob of Oud has ordered the whole of the building to be taken down and carried to Lucknow, with the intention, it is said, to be again erected in that city: a circumstance much to be lamented, as the abilities of modern workmen are by no means equal to a task so difficult and so extraordinary as the separating, removing, and again uniting the materials of so excellent a structure. ”

“ THE PRINCIPAL GATE LEADING TO THE TAJE MAH'L, AT AGRA.
This Gate is of red stone and white marble, elegantly ornamented. The spandals over the arches are decorated with foliage of various coloured stones inlaid. The Taje Mah'l is a Mausoleum of white marble, built by the Emperor Shah Jehan, in the year 1631, for his favourite Queen; and is considered by the natives as the most beautiful work of the kind in Hindoostan. ”

“ This statue of the sacred Bull, a celebrated idol at Tanjore, is formed of a single block of stone, sixteen feet two inches in length, by twelve feet six inches in height, and of a kind not to be met with but at a considerable distance from Tanjore; from which circumstance the natives are very much inclined to attribute something miraculous to the bringing of it thither; particularly as no records are yet discovered respecting the time of erecting it. ”

“ Shere Shah's Fort, as it is generally called, is remarkable for the strength of its walls; within which there are the remains of a large mosque of excellent workmanship with many other buildings, but the whole are very much in ruins. ”

“ Temples and other sacred structures of the Hindoos occur frequently on the banks of the Hoogley; and these buildings, of various forms, and in different situations, exposed or half concealed among deep and solemn groves, no less holy in the popular opinion than the edifices they shelter, give an air of romantic grandeur to scenes that are successively presented to those who pass along this interesting river. ”

“ The mountain, in which are these extraordinary efforts of human labour, accompanied by a very considerable degree of skill, is about a mile westward of the town of Ellora, of a semicircular form. The antiquity of these excavations, which unquestionably must be very great, is quite out of the reach of inquiry; the use of the greater number of them has evidently been for religious purposes. Many of the statues, basso-relievos, capitals of the pillars, and other decorative parts are executed in a very good style. The rock in which they are wrought is hard red granite ”

“ The fortress in which the spectator is placed seems elevated almost into the clouds; its sides are in many parts formed of perpendicular cliffs; it is moreover surrounded with every impediment, natural or artificial, that can render access either impossible or difficult; and all this is to enable one little tyrant to resist the hostility of another, or to favour his own projects of vengeance or plunder. ”

“ These low-landers gave also another example of the force of prejudice in their great aversion to the beautiful transparent water every where flowing through the hilly country; their stagnant reservoirs, and even the turbid waters of the Hoogley at Calcutta, appeared to them much more inviting. ”

“ The cataract of Dhuah Koonde, like those of Puppanassum, and Tancanche, attract visitors from all parts of the country; but not having the convenience of choultries, or similar accommodations, as at those places, they pitch their tents together in some favourable situation near to the water, and thus form a little society, which becomes a kind of fair, that enables these good people to mingle somewhat of cheerfulness with their devotion. ”

“ Raja Purdoo maan saa, its present chief, is a man of high caste, and much beloved by his people; of whom, nevertheless, he is but a feeble protector: like many of the minor sovereigns of our own hemisphere, whose sceptres of straw, the gracious boon, perhaps, of some colossal power, command no respect, and impart no security. ”

“ This garden is at a considerable distance from the palace, a circumstance not unusual with the opulent of India; places of this description, which may be truly called pleasure gardens, are generally large, intersected by straight paved walks, bordered with shrubs and flowers, and contain a variety of the most delicate fruits; they are embellished with several very elegant pavilions, where the master occasionally seats himself to enjoy his hooka, singing, dancing, &c. ”

“ The minars are of white marble, executed with great neatness; originally they were crowned with turrets, which have been destroyed by lightning. The Mausoleum within the garden, composed of the same materials, has a striking and grand effect; at the top of which, on the terrace, is placed the body of the Emperor, enclosed in a white marble tomb, elegantly ornamented.
Secundra is nine miles from Agra, and about one hundred and twenty-eight southward of Delhi.
The Gate leading to the Mausoleum of the Emperor Akbar, at Secundra, near Agra. ”

“ The peaceful inhabitants of these hills not only enjoy a secure retreat from the perils of polished society, but a luxuriant vegetation supplies them with food, and also with gums and other articles of commerce, with which, by sale or barter, they procure from the distant plains such conveniences as their moderate system of life requires. ”

“ This temple consists of a hall, with a verandah all round it; at the further end there is a recess for the idol, with a passage round that likewise; the pillars are very richly ornamented, and the walls exhibit a great profusion of sculpture. ”

“ The Waterfall at Courtallum, called Tancanche, about twenty miles northward from the Cataract of Puppanassum, is also accounted by the Hindoos a place of peculiar sanctity. On certain festivals the number of people that resort to this spot from every part of India, is almost incredible; and to accommodate so great a concourse of religious persons, numerous choultries are provided. ”

“ The Mausoleum of Mucdoom Shah is celebrated for its beauty; it was built at the beginning of the sixteenth century, in the reign of the Emperor Jehangire, by Mucdoom Shah, who was chief of the district. ”

“ The building to the right on the western extremity of the rock is an ancient Hindoo temple, held in great veneration by the votaries of that religion; and the lesser one on the summit, a Choultry, commanding a very rich and extensive prospect. ”

“ The respect which in India is paid to this awful phenomenon may, however, be more naturally accounted for than many of the prejudices that have taken possession of the human mind. A large river is almost universally a blessing to man in a state of society ”

“ But security is a principal source of happiness, and these regions offer few temptations to the ambition and rapacity of those exalted spirits, whose insatiable thirst of glory fills the world with mischief and misery. ”

“ It is built with stone, and covered in part with stucco of a very durable nature. The apartments receive light principally from the garden side, excepting the octangular projections at the angles. The roof is smoothly terraced, and commands a fine view of the city of Delhi and the river Jumna. The garden, in which beds of flowers and fountains are interspersed, is laid out in straight walks paved with freestone. ”

“ Amir Khusero, a prince and native of Samarcand, was a poet and historian of considerable merit. He resided at the court of Delhi, in great friendship with Shekh Nizam ad Dien Oulea. He died in the year one thousand three hundred and thirty-nine, and is interred very near the tomb of that venerable Shekh whom the Mahomedans regarded as a saint, and whose name they still continue to revere. ”

“ The verandah is in a very good style of architecture. The passage leading to the interior, which is partly excavated, is so completely choked up with large stones as to be inaccessible. This place having now no establishment for religious duty, is accordingly deserted. ”

“ On each side of the gateway, there is a projection reaching to the first story, with much sculpture and handsome battlements, which, however, have suffered much from the corroding hand of time. The gateway is very spacious and fine, furnished with apartments on each side, such as are now usually added to the Dewries or Portals of the eastern palaces. Over the gate is a balcony which seems intended for the Nobat Khana (Music gallery) . On the outside of the upper story of the gateway are pillars, that have much the appearance of the Grecian order. ”

“ There are two stripes of stone that run parallel to each other along the floor, from the entrance, the whole depth of this cave, (the prospect from which, of the great tank, town, and valley of Ellora, &c. is beautiful,) and seem intended as seats either for students, scribes, or the sellers of some commodities, a convenient passage lying between them up to the Idol at the end of the cave. ”

“ Sultaungunge is a village on the western bank of the river Ganges, about 300 miles above Calcutta. The Fakeer's rock is a small island in the Ganges. It consists of several masses of grey granite, and was formerly a point of land projecting from the shore, but by the violence of the current is now become perfectly insular. ”

“ In these high situations the traveller encounters no villages; he must carry with him the means of subsistence, or perish. Taka-ca-munda is a solitary resting place; a plain stone building erected near the barren summit of one of the highest mountains, for the accommodation of benighted wanderers, or to afford an occasional shelter from the storms that frequently vex these cloud-enveloped hills. ”

“ The Ruins at Cannouge are very extensive. The edifice to the left is a mosque built of freestone, on the site of an Hindoo temple, and probably much of the ancient materials have been again brought into use by the Mahomedans, (a frequent practice with them, after mutilating every ornament that had any reference to the Hindoo mythology,) the pillars, and some other parts, being evidently Hindoo. ”