Devil Soul
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Hazro: A small Pakistani town of mandirs and gurdwaras
ZULFIQAR ALI KALHORO — PUBLISHED ABOUT 3 HOURS AGO
Archeologist Dr Ahmad Hasan Dani, in one of my frequent meetings with him, remarked that Potohar is an open-air museum of history. The entire landscape, stretching from Rawat to Taxila and Katas, is dotted with remarkable monuments.
Dani’s remark inspired me to explore the Potohar region. It was during one of my expeditions that I traveled to a small town named Hazro - a tehsil of the Attock district, Punjab, and was instantly smitten.
Formerly a fortified town with four gates, Hazro is home to many temples,gurdwaras and havelis believed to have been built during the Sikh and British era.
A haveli in Hazro Town.
A haveli in Hazro Town.
I was, however, saddened to note that these once-magnificent edifices are now giving way. The Sikh gurdwara located at the Retla Mandi needs urgent renovation. The dome that crowns the monument has partially caved in. Paintings that once decorated the inner space of the structure are decaying.
These disintegrating structures present only a shadow of the grandeur they once had.
We can still see some paintings that adorn the walls of this gurdwara which depict Sikh gurus, most notably Baba Guru Nanak and his companions Bala and Mardana.
One also finds some murals of the Khalsa heroes. A close look at these artworks reveals illustrations of Sikh nayikas (heroines) who appear to be holding up mirrors to see their own beauty.
Depictions of such nayikas can also be found in various other Sikh and Hinduhavelis, temples or mandirs located in different towns and villages of Potohar. However, the most beautiful representations can be seen in the haveli of Baba Khem Singh Bedi in Kallar Syedan, Rawalpindi.
Apart from the gurdwaras, havelis also dominate Hazro’s landscape. Some of the most impressive havelis belonged to two brothers Bal Makan Shah and Gokal Shah.
Balam Khanda, the haveli owned by Makan Shah, is a fabulous piece of architecture where a Muslim family currently resides.
The haveli of Gokal Shah, on the other hand, has been transformed into asabzi mandi (vegetable market) which has diminished the beauty of the original edifice. The structure was well-known for its vastness and aesthetic appeal, and demonstrated the wealth and social stature of the owner. But now its paintings have lost their color and the once-beautiful jharokhas too have dulled.
At the time of its construction, Gokal Shah was the magistrate of Hazro. According to a notable resident of this small town, Hakeem Naeem, Shah owned much of the arable fields in the area. Half of the total land in Hazro was owned by the brothers. Later on, Gokal Shah’s son embraced Islam and was renamed Yousaf.
Hazro is also home to two temples. The first is located in Shahbaz mohallaand is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. Its interiors are decorated with ceramics.
Shiva Temple in Hazro.
View of Shiva Temple's Shikara.
The Shikara (superstructure) of the temple is adorned with chevron lines symbolising ‘life’.
The second temple, known as Harri Mandir, is located in an area with the same name, Hari mohalla, now called mohalla Jamia Masjid.
This haveli mandir is associated with the Hindu god Vishnu.
View of the Hari Mandir.
Painting on spandrels of cusped arch of Hari Mandir.
According to an inscription fixed just above the portico, the temple was built in memory of Bhagat Bishandas Vekanth by Swami Diyanand of the Sarswati Sabhapati Harri Mandir committee of Hazro in vikram sambat (Indian calendar) 1989 that is, circa 1928 A.D.
Closer view of the Hari Mandir's facade.
Harri Mandir is very large and spacious. The façade of the temple is decorated with jharokhas and balconies.
Jharoka in Hari Mandir
ZULFIQAR ALI KALHORO — PUBLISHED ABOUT 3 HOURS AGO
Archeologist Dr Ahmad Hasan Dani, in one of my frequent meetings with him, remarked that Potohar is an open-air museum of history. The entire landscape, stretching from Rawat to Taxila and Katas, is dotted with remarkable monuments.
Dani’s remark inspired me to explore the Potohar region. It was during one of my expeditions that I traveled to a small town named Hazro - a tehsil of the Attock district, Punjab, and was instantly smitten.
Formerly a fortified town with four gates, Hazro is home to many temples,gurdwaras and havelis believed to have been built during the Sikh and British era.
I was, however, saddened to note that these once-magnificent edifices are now giving way. The Sikh gurdwara located at the Retla Mandi needs urgent renovation. The dome that crowns the monument has partially caved in. Paintings that once decorated the inner space of the structure are decaying.
These disintegrating structures present only a shadow of the grandeur they once had.
We can still see some paintings that adorn the walls of this gurdwara which depict Sikh gurus, most notably Baba Guru Nanak and his companions Bala and Mardana.
One also finds some murals of the Khalsa heroes. A close look at these artworks reveals illustrations of Sikh nayikas (heroines) who appear to be holding up mirrors to see their own beauty.
Depictions of such nayikas can also be found in various other Sikh and Hinduhavelis, temples or mandirs located in different towns and villages of Potohar. However, the most beautiful representations can be seen in the haveli of Baba Khem Singh Bedi in Kallar Syedan, Rawalpindi.
Apart from the gurdwaras, havelis also dominate Hazro’s landscape. Some of the most impressive havelis belonged to two brothers Bal Makan Shah and Gokal Shah.
Balam Khanda, the haveli owned by Makan Shah, is a fabulous piece of architecture where a Muslim family currently resides.
The haveli of Gokal Shah, on the other hand, has been transformed into asabzi mandi (vegetable market) which has diminished the beauty of the original edifice. The structure was well-known for its vastness and aesthetic appeal, and demonstrated the wealth and social stature of the owner. But now its paintings have lost their color and the once-beautiful jharokhas too have dulled.
At the time of its construction, Gokal Shah was the magistrate of Hazro. According to a notable resident of this small town, Hakeem Naeem, Shah owned much of the arable fields in the area. Half of the total land in Hazro was owned by the brothers. Later on, Gokal Shah’s son embraced Islam and was renamed Yousaf.
Hazro is also home to two temples. The first is located in Shahbaz mohallaand is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. Its interiors are decorated with ceramics.
The Shikara (superstructure) of the temple is adorned with chevron lines symbolising ‘life’.
The second temple, known as Harri Mandir, is located in an area with the same name, Hari mohalla, now called mohalla Jamia Masjid.
This haveli mandir is associated with the Hindu god Vishnu.
According to an inscription fixed just above the portico, the temple was built in memory of Bhagat Bishandas Vekanth by Swami Diyanand of the Sarswati Sabhapati Harri Mandir committee of Hazro in vikram sambat (Indian calendar) 1989 that is, circa 1928 A.D.
Harri Mandir is very large and spacious. The façade of the temple is decorated with jharokhas and balconies.
