Let's get back to Chittorgarh! So we travelled from the Kumbha Palace further into the fort. One signboard said " Jauhar Kund and Vijay Stambh". But our driver said we should see the Kirti Stambh first. So we went about half an hour through the old fort road. It was narrow and was an old road for horses. We stopped at the other end of the fort and saw the Kirti Stambh and Jain Temple. Built in the 12th Century this one stood on a higher hill than the Vijay Stambh. It was a Jain structure. Wonderful architecture and spectacular view.
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| Kirti Stambh and Jain Temple |
The Vijay Stambh was more spectacular, the reason being it was built later and also using Kirti Stambh as an example. The architecture is finer and you can walk up the really narrow staircase to the top floor and get a clear view of the temples and Jauhar Sthal. If you have problems in closed places like me you can find climbing a little uneasy.
Rana Kumbha defeated the allied enemies of Malwa and Gujrat under Mahmud Khilji. When he returned victoriously, he wanted to build a monument. A Jain Guru in his court suggested making it so that it doesn't become bigger than the Kirti stambh in width and height. So the original place where the stambh was supposed to be built was cancelled after making the base that stands even today and it was built on a lower surface a few metres away.
The reason was that a King shouldn't be vain enough to make his achievements greater than his religion. He decided to dedicate the Vijay Stambh to his Aradhya Vishnu. And also built the Kumbha Shyaam Temple.
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| Vijay Stambh |
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| The Base of the original site of Vijay Stambh |
If you want to see Rajput architecture and Finery amongst the ruined, destroyed Chittorgarh then look carefully at the figures and designs on the Vijay Stambh.
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| The Narrow roads with pillars indicated there was a wall |
The next stop was the temples and Talabs, each telling its own story at Chittorgarh!
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